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REVIEW: Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes

I went bananas for these apes. It’s all about the apes. The humans don't even appear on screen for 15 minutes. And only 2 humans are bonafide stars, Keri Russell, who plays a CDC doc and Gary Oldman, the leader of the humans.

It’s astounding how real the apes look, thanks to motion capture technology. Andy Serkis has made a career in CGI characters- he’s Gollum from “The Lord Of The Rings” and “The Hobbit”. Serkis returns as Caesar, who we first met in the 2011 “Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes” , starring James Franco, who we get to see in a couple of flashbacks. When we last saw the genetically enhanced Caesar, he was leading other mutated apes into the Northern California woods. We pick up ten years later , still in the woods ,where Caesar is the leader of the ape nation. The humans are almost extinct, thanks to a particularly deadly flu. A simbian flu. One more reason for the humans to hate the apes.

Set in a post-apocalyptic San Francisco, this turns into a battle of who will control the world: the apes or the humans. You won’t get the answer. Yes- a 9th (!!!) “Planet Of The Apes” flick is on the way. It all started more than 45 years ago with Charlton Heston and James Franciscus with Kim Hunter and Roddy McDowell as apes.

My one (minor) complaint. Why why why the 3-D??

This movie lives up to its name- “Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes” really IS a new dawn for this blockbuster franchise.